Agrius convolvuli is commonly known as the sweet potato hawkmoth or hornworm. Hawkmoths are big, with wing spans between 80–105 mm, grey to black with pink abdominal segments. Sweet potato weevil is the most destructive of all sweet potato pests as it destroys stems, leaves and fruit from the field to stored produce Kibrom Beyene. [...]

Blosyrus inaequalis is mostly found in Siri-Lanka and India, but lately also in the northern parts of South Africa. So far the economical damage cause in the highveld in South Africa is not a big concern, but in the lowveld it can cause problems. Folded leaf edges with 15-25 eggs is a sign of Blosyrus [...]

Sweet potato weevil can be devastating in Africa. losses between 73%N.E.J.M.Smit,"The effect of the indigenous cultural practices of in-ground storage and piecemeal harvesting of sweetpotato on yield and quality losses caused by sweetpotato weevil in Uganda," Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment,vol.64,no. 3, pp. 191–200, 1997. -100%K. O. Fuglie, “Priorities for sweetpotato research in developing countries: results [...]

Root knot nematode, Meloidogyne spp., are small round worms present on the roots and must not be confused with root knots of Rhizobium spp., which are actually good for the plant. Legume nodules are smaller and pinkish inside while Root Knot galls are distorted and have abnormal branches. Root Knot infestation just looks bad compared [...]

When susceptible crop plantings follow at close intervals i.e. within 12 months or less, beet cyst nematode builds up in the soil to damaging population concentrations. High populations may reduce the yield by 20-40%. The beet cyst nematode was found in vegetable lands around cities such as Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban, Pinetown, Port [...]

Green beans are attached by various pests and because effective pest control is such an important aspect of green bean production, the bean pests must be identified before the correct control measures can be applied. The safe period applicable to a specific pesticide is very important. This period allows the chemical to bio-degrade and makes [...]

The Fall Armyworm is native to the US and northern parts of South America (Argentina).  I think that everyone is quite surprised to find it in central Africa and especially South Africa.  The spread of Fall Armyworm in to South Africa can be attributed to globalization and we will have to deal with many more such [...]